


Reach for the Stars

by KaytheJay



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: M/M, New York City
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-15
Updated: 2018-09-15
Packaged: 2019-07-12 15:39:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,192
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15998270
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KaytheJay/pseuds/KaytheJay
Summary: Dan is a lawyer who went to New York when he forced himself to take a break from work. He thinks it is a pointless trip until he runs into his favorite YouTuber from back in the day.





	Reach for the Stars

Dan walked through the streets of New York with his head down. He was in a strange country with no familiar faces around him. How he’d convinced himself to come on this trip, he had no clue. 

There was no reason to be in New York at this time of year, especially for some British guy. It was cold as hell outside and even Dan’s heavy coat wasn’t doing it for him. It wasn’t even like he had a convention or something to be at. He was just randomly in a strange city with nothing to do and no one to talk to.

Well, until he bumped into someone.

The other man’s hair was dark. His eyes, at first glance looked blue, but upon further examination, Dan saw that his eyes were blue with a bit of yellow to them. His skin was comically pale, besides for the red flush covering his face. He also looked very familiar.

“Oh I’m so sorry,” the stranger said in a Northern British accent. “I didn’t see you there.” The stranger looked away from Dan.

“I should have been paying attention to where I was going,” Dan replied. The stranger smiled.

“I’m Phil, by the way,” the man said.

“D-Dan,” Dan replied, suddenly realizes where he’d seen Phil before. He had been a fan of Phil’s years ago, though not much for his content any more. As a twenty-six year old man, he didn’t have the time to watch silly videos on the internet. He had a job to do to keep a roof over his head. Well, and to keep innocent people out of prison and put criminals in. He didn’t particularly like his job, but it was what he went to college for, so he figured there was nothing else out there he could really do. He couldn’t afford to go back to school and waste his law degree.

“Well, nice meeting you,” Phil said as he tried to walk away.

“Wait, you’re AmazingPhil, aren’t you?” Phil looked back to Dan and smiled.

“It’s what the internet calls me,” Phil replied.

“I used to be a big fan.” Dan shrugged. Phil looked over Dan’s shoulder.

“Dan. As in that danisnotonfire guy?”

“How did you-” Phil smiled.

“Just a guess, I suppose.” Phil looked Dan up and down. “And I suppose I guessed right.”

“So you noticed me enough to still know who I am?” Dan asked. Phil nodded.

“How could I forget the guy who always commented first on all of my YouTube videos and Twitter posts? Heck, you go as far back as MySpace.” Dan couldn’t believe it. His teenage senpai was sitting here telling him that he still remembered who he was. Impossible. “You know, I was thinking about trying to become friends with you at one point.” Phil sighed. “Oh well the past is in the past.” Phil tried to walk away.

“Why don’t we try now?” Dan asked before he realized the words that were coming out of his mouth. Phil turned.

“Why would we do that? It’s been years since danisnotonfire said anything to me, why would he still be interested in being friends?” A smile played on his face.

“He only quit trying because he thought it was all in vein,” Dan replied. “In three years, AmazingPhil replied to him once.”

“Is that so?” Phil asked. “I happen to know AmazingPhil, quite well actually, and he thought that the danisnotonfire guy was really sweet and handsome.” Dan didn’t know how to reply. His idol from his teenage years just called him sweet and handsome. How was he supposed to react? He’d never been in a situation like this before. He’d bet his ass that no one else ever had been either.

“How’s lunch sound? On me,” he replied.

•••

Phil burst out laughing.

“You, a lawyer. You’re kidding.” Dan shook his head.

“To be completely honest, I wish I was. I just thought law seemed to be a very intelligent major choice and it’d be easy to find a job with it. I hated it all through college and I hate it now. I just feel like there’s nothing else for me to do at this point.” Phil rolled his eyes.

“It’s never too late to start chasing something you actually want to do with your life.” Dan sighed.

“But it is! I have no time to myself to even figure out what I like doing anymore,” Dan exclaimed. “When I’m in the office, I’m dealing with clients, when I’m at home I’m trying to piece together how to keep my client out of jail, or at least to minimize how long they have to be in there if they are guilty. It drives me insane.”

“That’s no way to live,” Phil replied. “Especially since you don’t love it. If you loved it, it’d be different and I’d be giving a different speech. You aren’t happy, so right now all you’re doing is not dying. You aren’t living.” Dan shrugged.

“I don’t know. I can’t really afford to quit doing the whole law thing, and I certainly can’t afford to give up any time with it. If my clients don’t win their case, I’m forced to give them half off my original price.” Dan paused for a second. “And I don’t uh … win often.” Dan coughed. “I barely graduated. I barely got my job. I’m barely keeping it.” Phil stood up.

“The Dan kid I knew had hopes and dreams. Sure, they were as simple as trying to get some guy online to notice him, but he had hopes and dreams. The Dan I’m talking to now is a hopeless case of boring. He doesn’t know what he wants to do with his life. Even if he did know, he doesn’t see that he has the power to change it.” Phil shook his head. “It was nice meeting you, Dan. Thanks for lunch, but I can’t be around your negativity.” Phil put his coat on and checked his watch. “It’s getting late I have places to be.”

And just like that he was gone. Just like that, Dan was once again shattered.

“Phil wait!” Dan called after him, but Phil was gone. Dan threw some money on the table and ran outside. “Phil!” None of the people around him looked up from their phones or slowed down. Dan frantically looked around. He spotted a tall man who looked like he might be Phil and chased after him. “Phil.” Phil turned around and saw him.

“What do you want?” Phil asked softly.

“I want to be happy with my life. I don’t want to just exist. I want to live.” Phil smiled.

“Reach for the stars. Have you ever considered YouTube? Even as a side thing.” Dan thought to the notebooks that were sitting at home in his bottom left desk drawer. There had to be at least three of them now, full of ideas for a YouTube channel he thought he would never start. Phil smiled. “Call me when you get your first video uploaded,” Phil handed Dan a piece of paper. “I’d love to be your first viewer.”


End file.
